Sonic games have a rough history, don’t they? So many of them have so much potential and great ideas but, more times than not, they end up falling flat on their face. It pains me to say this because I am a MASSIVE Sonic fan. However, even if we can’t agree which games are good, I think we can all agree that the music in these games is always amazing. I was riding the train to work one day when “With Me”, the final boss theme from Sonic and the Black Knight, came up on my iPod’s shuffle. While listening to it, I realized something I’ve never really paid attention to before: This song is one of the best villain boss themes of all time.
Before I get into the nitty gritty, I’ll put a spoiler warning for Sonic and the Black Knight since I will be talking about plot of the game, the villain and their motivations when talking about the both the lyrics and the instrumentals of the song.
This may be only me, but I find “With Me” to be an extremely emotional song. The song is written/performed from the villain’s POV. For context, in Sonic and the Black Knight, Merlin created a shadow knight, a fake King Arthur, to rule over Avalon. Merlina, Merlin’s granddaughter, gazes into the future and sees the downfall of the Round Table and the ruin of Avalon. She summons Sonic to defeat King Arthur and retrieve Excalibur’s scabbard so she can cast a spell powerful enough to essentially make the kingdom eternal. When Sonic finds out the truth, he and the Knights of the Round Table rush to stop Merlina. Her motivation, I think, can be best be summed up in one of her quotes, when she mutters to herself “Why do flowers bloom, knowing they are destined to wither?” Her character is filled with so much sorrow from beginning to end and “With Me” captures this despair perfectly.
“With Me” is not only Merlina’s theme (per say), but also the Final Boss theme, meaning that musically and lyrically, “With Me” is a very intense, climactic song. The song is written and performed from Merlina’s point of view, as she has a conversation with Sonic as made clear by the first lyric of the song: “You know, every world will have its end”. Fitting of any good boss theme, there’s a ton of posturing, and I just love some good old villain lines like “Do you dare to fight evil’s might?” or “I’ll create your final rest”. My favorite one of this bunch being “Spells beyond you as I watch you crawl” (gotta love god-y lines like these). However, alongside lyrics like these, there’s not only an acknowledgement of her enemy’s (Sonic) strength and resolve, as evidenced by lyrics by “My eyes are filled with curiosity. Do you think you have power over me?” and “Scream your dreams as you dare to fight”, but it is also drenched in remorse. Merlina doesn’t want to fight, she’s just doing what she thinks is best for her people, but she will be the monster of the story if she so needs to be. “I am who you don’t think I am. All wrapped up in my evil plan. Do you dare to fight Evil’s might? I’ll be the last one standing in a flash of light” while later in the song she sings “Don’t blame me for what I have become”. Most evidently, this sentiment is expressed in the verse that leads to the title of the song: “In this life, there’s no room for you and me. So turn away or face this day with me.” “With Me” perfectly capture’s Merlina’s sorrow, remorse, and undying determination in just 4 minutes. While the lyrics make these feelings explicit, it is the music that makes us FEEL what she does.
I will take any opportunity to talk down on Hamilton with absolute glee and pleasure, but there is a point to this so hear me out. In my review of Hamilton’s opening number “Alexander Hamilton”, I mentioned that the genre of music, instrumentation, and arrangement of the song are not just some spice or seasoning, but part of the main dish. Since music IS the vehicle of storytelling in a musical, the music is the most important part of the story, therefore, this goes double in mediums like musicals.
Sonic and the Black Knight is NOT a musical, but the music that plays during the final boss battle sets the mood and tone for the battle, while the lyrics create insight into the character. Essentially, the song is functioning in a similar manner than it would in a musical without the characters themselves breaking into song. “With Me” is a high octane heavy metal song. I feel that the rhythm section is this song’s MVP. The driving distorted guitar and bass coupled with a pounding drum beat give the song the energy and intensity worthy of any climactic battle. However, the guitars will sometimes break into arpeggios and as those notes are left ringing, there’s this gentle sensation of lingering feelings. These lingering notes give this otherwise heavy song, the air of melancholy and remorse that dwell’s in our POV character. Crush 40 did a cover of this song called the “With Me (Massive Power Mix)” and the song is down tuned to drop C, which makes it much heavier. I don’t know if this was to accommodate Johnny’s voice, but I think that this was more of a creative decision rather than a technical one. I bring this version up because I feel Sega and Crush 40 thought it’d be a good idea to have a heavier alternative, but it actually ruins the vibe of the song since “With Me” has to balance the heavy metal intensity with something as subtle as melancholic sorrow. The original is played on Standard tuning and it’s in the key of E minor and this higher register allows the song to better balance these two elements.
Moving on to the vocals, Emma Gellotte’s and Tinna Karlsdotter have some incredible harmonies and the call/response they have throughout the song add layers and dynamics. If you’re wondering why I haven’t mentioned Marty Friedman’s guitar work, the reason is because, in all honesty, his guitar solos throughout the song are basically a third voice responding to Emma & Tinna at the end of certain verses. If I had to nitpick, however, I’m not entirely sold on Friedman’s solo for the song. Don’t get me wrong, I think Marty Friedman’s playing is superb in this song, and even his choice of notes are incredibly inspired. However, there are certain parts in the solo where instead of playing 16th notes, I would’ve let the note ring or bend to the note. Without wanting to sound like the Emperor in Amadeus, I just think that for this particular song, the guitar solo has “too many notes." Actually, I think the song would’ve benefitted more from something closer to what Jun Senoue played in the “Massive Power Mix”. I still like Marty’s solo more than Jun’s, but somewhere in the middle of the two of them lies the perfect guitar solo for “With Me”.
Is “With Me” the best villain theme of all time? No. Best Final Boss Theme? Probably not. The competition is definitely tough in that department. However, I do think this song is quite under appreciated. It does so much in its lyrics and its music that it enriches the rest of the story and the battle in Sonic and the Black Knight. There’s this little detail I noticed where the song itself is a musical representation of the battle (The two back and forth vocals are Sonic and the villain, and Marty’s guitar is Caliburn, but I do think that this is coincidental at best, and me reading too deep into it at worst). When I first played Sonic and the Black Knight, I thought it was an ok game. I never really go back and play it, but when I do, I always replay that final fight against that friend who all they wanted was for their country, their people, to prosper. So, when the time comes to deliver that final strike of your sword, what’s it gonna be? Will you turn away, or face this day with me?
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